New Delhi, July 26: High on confidence after his his semifinal finish at the Singapore Open, Indian shuttler P. Kashyap has now set his eyes on emulating the achievement in the Kumpoo Macau Open Badminton Championships starting at Macau on Tuesday.
The 12th seed Indian has been in good form of late and said although the field is tough, he has backed himself to reach the semifinals.
“It is a tough field as all the top players including Lee Chong Wei, Kenichi Tago, Simon Santoso are playing in the tournament. But I have worked hard on my game and I hope to reach the semifinals at least,” said Kashyap, who will take on Swede Magnus Sahlberg in the first round.
“The first round should be okay. But Tago will be a difficult opponent but I have done well in Singapore and my fitness have improved so I hope to do well in Macau,” he said. Compatriot R.M.V. Gurusaidutt, who finished runners-up at India Open in Chennai last month, is also hoping to create some upsets in the tournament.
“I have played well in the last six months. I finished runners-up in India Open and lost many close matches with top players. So I am confident that I can create a few upsets in the tournament,” Gurusaidutt said.
“The field is good. There are some very good players but I feel it is a decent draw. In the first round I am playing a qualifier and probably should face 16th seed Kazushi Yamada in the second round. I am confident of beating him,” he added.
The 20-year-old Indian said adjusting to the drift inside the stadium in Macau would be important. “I have to adjust to the conditions as soon as possible. One has to know how to negotiate with the drifts during these international tournaments,” he said. He also said he has put on weight which allows him to improve his repertoire of strokes. “I have put on weight and my strokes have also improved,” he said.